Out Of Round

wildbill

Platinum Member
Taking bets and open to ideas.

I noticed when putting a reso head on a bass drum that it was an extremely tight fit and I had to work it on a little at a time.
Used a rubber hammer to get it back off again. I've never had an out of round drum before, but thought I should measure it. Sure enough. :(
 
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With guitar necks.....

Make sure wood is at proper moister content.
Loosen truss rod
Clamp into desired shape
Warm to 200F for a duration.
Turn off heat
Leave Overnight - 24h
Unclamp and measure the change


With guitars, the heat is applied locally with a pad or lamp. I assume you'd need a big oven for drums, and wouldn't be able to leave the wrap on them.

Also note, with guitars, this is a last ditch effort before having the fretboard removed and neck re-planed . It doesn't always work, doesn't always last when it works, and in some cases makes things worse despite performing the procedure perfectly.

Anyone re-true a drum before?
 
Though various strategies are bandied about for restoring out-of-round drums, the prognosis is always grim to me. A warped shell is deceased in my schema. I'd consign it to the flames. Fortunately, I've never had to address this issue with my own equipment.
 
Internal truss rods. Sort of like the flobeam on some metal snares. You can either use one to pull in the wide part, one to push out the narrow spot, or both. If designed like an aerofoil, they should leave no discernable sonic difference being in there. You can attach them at lug mounting points.
 
Did you measure the diameters again with the straps in place? I'd be interesting to know. Then measure again when you release the straps.

If the drum doesn't stay in round, maybe you could leave the straps on permanently? :unsure:
 
I have a MIJ snare that's out of round (or maybe just slightly large, I didn't bother to measure it) but I also had to hammer off a standard head. Now I just use the slightly oversized heads that are made for vintage drums. I don't think it matters at all that the drum is out of round, within reason.

Ambassador Coated Classic Fit
Aquarian American Vintage
 
I had the same problem with a ‘63 Slingerland bass, minus the hammering the head part. I used a couple of shims: thin strips of foam core board on the “wide” side To make the heads tight and seal the drum. You can’t tell by the sound what’s been done. I figure it’s a little vented.
 
I wonder if placing it in a moist heated sauna would help it reshape it or steam it to reshape would definitely work but I don’t know what it might do to a ply shell. Inventive way to fix it-I guess you could add internal structural support but I d try steaming gently and slowly .Maybe have a thin aluminum collar made for inside circumference you could screw it to hold then take off straps?
 
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I wonder if placing it in a moist heated sauna would help it reshape it or steam it to reshape would definitely work but I don’t know what it might do to a ply shell.

For most wood, the magic begins to happen at ~200F. Steaming is indiscriminate, and you're just as likely to end up with ply/seam separation as you are a true/round shell.

That said, if you have a sauna that will do 200F @ 50% humidity, you should probably have it looked at by a qualified technician immediately. ;-)
 
Though various strategies are bandied about for restoring out-of-round drums, the prognosis is always grim to me. A warped shell is deceased in my schema. I'd consign it to the flames. Fortunately, I've never had to address this issue with my own equipment.
I have to ask—do you speak this way in person, or do you only write like this?
If you do speak this way, I envision it sounding something like this...

 
I have to ask—do you speak this way in person, or do you only write like this?
If you do speak this way, I envision it sounding something like this...


Ha! I'm afraid I'm not even a fraction that sinister or dramatic. As for the way I write being in line with the way I speak, I'd say the two are quite similar. I don't compose drafts of my forum posts or resort to thesauruses along the way. I write what comes to mind, mostly in a stream-of-consciousness fashion. I've been an avid reader since early childhood. Words have always come easily.
 
I spoke with Ronn Dunnett on the phone regarding out-of-roundness. He felt it was a non-issue, if a head will go on, because the head basically pulls the drum back into round.
 
Ha! I'm afraid I'm not even a fraction that sinister or dramatic. As for the way I write being in line with the way I speak, I'd say the two are quite similar. I don't compose drafts of my forum posts or resort to thesauruses along the way. I write what comes to mind, mostly in a stream-of-consciousness fashion. I've been an avid reader since early childhood. Words have always come easily.

May we have access to your full profile?
 
Ha! I'm afraid I'm not even a fraction that sinister or dramatic. As for the way I write being in line with the way I speak, I'd say the two are quite similar. I don't compose drafts of my forum posts or resort to thesauruses along the way. I write what comes to mind, mostly in a stream-of-consciousness fashion. I've been an avid reader since early childhood. Words have always come easily.
Well, in my mind, everything you say (or write) sounds like a movie trailer.

As for the OP, while I don't think the straps idea will work, I hope I'm wrong for Bill's sake.
 
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